October 2–14

Hilary Knight was born stagestruck, 90 years ago. Best known as the illustrator of the American classic Eloise, he cites the performing arts as the single greatest influence on his life and career. Now for the first time, Hilary Knight’s stagestruck life is the subject of a comprehensive exhibition that includes original artwork for posters; theatrical illustrations for Vanity Fair magazine (where Knight is a contributing editor); Knight’s most recent work—three-dimensional portraits in stage-like settings—and costume and set designs for performances and revues that reveal that for Hilary Knight, all the world is indeed a stage.

October 5

Born in the rural countryside near Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, Joan Soriano infuses steel string bachata with equal parts romance and grit. A practitioner of palo and gaga, Soriano blends Afro-Dominican sacred traditions with bachata, imparting his music with down-to-earth spirit and danceability, preserving bachata's roots and expanding on them.

October 12

This Lincoln Center commission commemorates Howard Zinn’s seminal book, A People’s History of the United States, with music and spoken word performances that will bring to life the extraordinary history of ordinary people in the book: those who built the movements that made the United States what it is today, ending slavery and Jim Crow, protesting war and the genocide of Native Americans, creating unions and the eight-hour workday, advancing women's rights and gay liberation, and struggling to right the wrongs of the day.

October 19

Since 2007, Mexico City–based band Ampersan has honored its close relationship with traditional Mexican music, while also embarking on cultural exchanges and embracing sound experimentation and contemporary classical music. Mixing traditional instruments with modern genres such as rock, jazz, and electronic, the band creates immersive musical poetry. Tonight, Ampersan leads us on an audiovisual journey through the diﬀerent landscapes and sounds of Mexico and Latin America.

October 20

The Lower East Side's own Avenida B presides over the dance floor for a night of classic salsa dura. It may be a new group but it has an old soul, committed to unearthing and reviving the old-school sound and timeless swing of the kind of salsa that truly makes you want to get up and dance. DJ Antonio (a.k.a. La Conga NYC) gets the floor warmed up with a salsa set that stretches from the ’60s to today.

October 26–31

The exhibition Winter Wonderland: George Balanchine’sThe Nutcracker® charts the early years of the ballet’s life from its premiere in February 1954 to the success of the remounted production in 1964. Through treasures from the archives of the Jerome Robbins Dance Division, including photographs, set models, costume designs, and original film footage, the story of the work emerges, as do the thematic qualities that make Balanchine’s version of the ballet unique and so enduring: namely nostalgia, faith, love, and childhood innocence and wonder.

October 26

German-Dutch cabaret star Sven Ratzke returns to Lincoln Center, bringing along his amazing live band. Together they’ll perform songs from their new hit show Homme Fatale, featuring songs by history’s great songwriters, including David Bowie, Rufus Wainwright, Jacques Brel, and Bertolt Brecht, plus some Ratzke originals. Prepare to be entertained.

October 28

Who is Crankenstein? He may look like any ordinary boy, but when faced with a rainy day, a melting popsicle, or an early bedtime, one little boy transforms into a mumbling, grumbling Crankenstein. When Crankenstein meets his match in a fellow Crankenstein, the results could be catastrophic—or they could be just what he needs to brighten his day!

October 28

In times of turmoil, when contention and strife hold sway in all corners of the public square, what can we hold onto when the ground beneath us shifts? WNYC’s John Schaefer moderates a free discussion in which leading thinkers and theorists ponder the question of faith from diverse perspectives, examining its myriad meanings for secular seekers and religious adherents alike. Panelists include neurologist Jay Lombard, musician John Darnielle, and paleoanthropologist Alison S. Brooks.